


Hell's Obsession

by Clarybell90



Category: Original Work
Genre: Death, Demons, Fear, Gen, Half-Demon Children, Hallucinations, Horror Elements, Horrors of the Deep, Interspecies Relationship(s), Just enjoy my weird imagination, Near Death Experiences, Near Drowning, Obsessive Behavior, Possessive Behavior, Power Dynamics, Temples of Old, This is a weird one I'll admit, Water Motifs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-20
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:53:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,921
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25410442
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Clarybell90/pseuds/Clarybell90
Summary: "Visitors?" He asks, not quite moving away from the Father's touch."Yes, my son. Visitors. Desperate to get out."
Relationships: Father & Sons
Kudos: 6





	Hell's Obsession

There is new sounds in the temple, just loud enough to hear in the deep over the sound of rushing water. Screams and banging, calling for help through a locked door. The gloom inside shifts, all converging together in a single room, furthest from the surface. A form slowly emerges, edges all blurring into the dark. A face appears, a bleached white bull's skull the only thing clear in the gloom, spiral horns twisting up from the brightness, scraping against the ceiling.

The creature tilts it's head, listening. After a few minutes, an arm detaches from within it's undefined body. It reaches inwards, towards the very core of it's being, and parts itself. There, in the center, lays a boy, no older than fifteen, sleeping soundly despite the black being around it.

Oh so gently, the hand cups itself underneath the boy, slowly extracting him from within. The boy stands out against the pitch, pale and clothed in shades of blue and green. A second hand joins the first, this one ruffling the boy's brown hair with a single finger. Carefully, unwilling to hurt the tiny figure, that finger moves down to the boy's back, softly shaking him awake.

Green eyes blink blearily into the din, taking in the shadow filled room around them. The boy shifts, twisting slightly to face the skull looking down upon him. His hands curl into the surface below him, and tendrils of darkness drift up in response, wrapping around the boy's arms like an embrace.

"Father?"

" ** _Shhhh_** ," The Father replies, the skull's jaw not moving even as his voice reverberates through the air, " _ **Listen**_."

And the boy does, closing his eyes. The Father bends his fingers up slightly, allowing the boy to lay his head against them as he focuses. He has to strain more than the Father does, ears still very much human. After of several long moments he opens his eyes again.

"Visitors?" He asks, not quite moving away from the Father's touch.

" ** _Yes, my son. Visitors. Desperate to get out_**."

"Why wake me, then? I do not control the temple."

A finger strokes softly against the boy's cheek, and small hands come up to hold it. The Father tilts his head slightly, and to anyone else the stare his empty sockets give would be unnerving, but the boy meets it without even flinching. He almost even looks vaguely fond.

" ** _Yes, but I can not directly influence them, child_**." He strokes the boy's cheek once more, " _ **And I'm hungry**_."

The boy sighs, before climbing to his feet, using the Father's finger as a support. The Father remains still until the boy is standing tall, before carefully lowering his hands to a ledge above the pool of water covering the floor. With a small jump, the boy lands safely. The sound echoes through the room, bouncing through the Father's body as if he wasn't truly there.

Stretching, the boy turns away from the Father and towards a darkened doorway. Shadows twist towards the boy, affectionate, protective. He barely even acknowledges them.

"When will you need me back, Father?" He asks, popping his back softly as he continues to stretch.

" _ **There is no rush my son. After all, they cannot escape**_."

Humming, the boy heads for the door.

" _ **Tobias**_." The Father brushes a finger against the boy's back, " _ **Be safe, and use the secret tunnels. Do not allow them to harm you**_."

Tobias looks back, smiling softly, "Of course, Father."

* * *

Ezekiel tries calling someone on his phone for the fifth time in the last half-hour. Despite the device telling him that he still has one - sometimes even two if he stands just right - bars left, not a single one goes through. Each one just gives back static feedback, deafening in his ear.

Growling in frustration, Ezekiel resists the urge to throw the damn thing and instead starts pacing back and forth. Three steps to the right, turn, three steps to the left, turn, repeat. Ava watches him, sitting in one of the few cracks of light coming in from the partially collapsed ceiling. Her pink hair practically glows.

"Still no luck?"

"No!" Ezekiel yells, gesturing wildly up with his hands. His heart is pounding in his chest, panic threatening to overtake him. He turns on his heel to once again pace, when a heavy hand lands on his shoulder, stopping him in place.

"Calm down, dude," Mason says, his dark skin blending in well with the gloom, making him look like a hulking shadow, "This place is a wreck. I'm sure we can find a way out."

And that, at least, was true. They'd walked all around the temple before entering. They'd even taken a few candid shots at the front door, posing with the half faded carvings before entering. They'd seen area after area with broken rock and collapsed ceilings. Somewhere there was a place they could crawl out and get help.

Ezekiel still wishes the front door hadn't have sealed shut behind them, once they entered. The stone hardly budged when all three of them pushed at it. If Ezekiel remembers right, it's the very same one that hung above the entrance. They must have disturbed it, caused it to collapse somehow.

Still. Something feels off about this place, and if he could help it, Ezekiel would rather not press any deeper than they already have. Yet that seems like less of an option each and every time his calls come back with static.

Taking a deep breath, Ezekiel runs a hand through his short hair, "You're right. Just freaking myself out. Let's go."

Mason claps his shoulder softly, and Ava raises from her place on the floor. Pulling out a flashlight, Ava turns it on as soon as she steps out of the light, pointing the thing to the darkest corners of the rooms. The shadows almost seem to skitter away, as if they were alive, but Ezekiel blinks and then they're back to normal, breaking apart as Ava sweeps the area.

Eventually she lands on a door, a dark gaping maw even in the face of the flashlight. The hair on the back of Ezekiel's neck raises, even as he follows Ava through the threshold, Mason close behind him. It feels.... Cold. Endless. And every single bone in Ezekiel's body is prepared to run.

The next room finds them nothing but dripping water, and stairs, going down into the deep. Immediately, Ezekiel stops.

"We're _not_ going underground. Lets go back and see if we missed any more entrances."

"What, Zeke? You afraid of some dirt?" Ava asks, kicking a pebble down the stairs. It echoes, even as it skitters out of sight. The sound doesn't stop for several long seconds.

"No. I don't want to get buried if that shit collapses. There probably isn't even an exit down there."

Ava huffs, crossing her arms and sending the flashlight beam dancing across the room, blinding both Ezekiel and Mason. "You two are no fun."

Mason opens his mouth to say something, but before he can say anything the sound of scraping stone has them all spinning back around. In a repeat of what happened when they first entered the temple in the first place, a rock slams down from above, blocking the entrance with a loud boom.

"I think the girl is right, you know. It's more fun down here." A voice calls from within the stairway. Yet when Ava turns the flashlight down there, there's nothing.

"What the fuck man," Mason whispers, pressing himself against the back wall. Ezekiel wants to echo that statement, but his mouth suddenly feels as if it's been stuffed with cotten.

"Unless you would rather starve to death up there, waiting for a door to never open. If so, go ahead. I won't stop you," The voice calls again, then it once again falls silent.

Ava looks pale in the back light, the beam shaking slightly with her hands.

"Zeke."

Ezekiel swallows, "Yes?"

"That voice. It sounds like you."

* * *

Tobias watches from above as the enter the main chamber. Light floods down from far above, cracks in the ceiling allowing beams to illuminate the area below. The three stumble their way in, soaked from the water that always drips down from the stairway. From most of this place, if he's honest. But they haven't reached those areas yet.

Shadows cling to him, hiding him from sight. The Father must have ordered them, he thinks, because they curl around him even as he tilts closer to the light to see. Mindful of the ledge, Tobias watches the newcomers with interest.

The first one is a teenage girl, long hair unnaturally died a bright pink. She holds a flashlight before her, looking very much like she's about to become sick to her stomach. It's a common enough sight, the Father's presence in this place along enough to disrupt normal human's soul. He'll probably say her's tastes good, nothing marinating a soul better than fear.

Things like that used to make Tobias hate his Father, made him try and escape. Try and leave. It took years for the Father to make it clear that Tobias wasn't getting out. After that it became easier to accept his Father's needs. And a few years later, even helping him. It's better this way, anyways. At least like this, Tobias can help them avoid the traps that leave them mutilated before even finding the Father. Can lessen their pain. The way the Father kills them, after all, is painless.

Moving on to the second one, he finds a larger teen, a boy. His skin is dark, hair sheared down to the barest hint of black fuzz. His face is twisted into a nervous frown, eyes darting around every shadow that the light doesn't touch. He looks at where Tobias is hiding, and then away, seeing nothing through the tendrils that cling to him.

Tobias lets his gaze lazily slide to the third person, only to jerk back from the edge with alarm. His movement sends pebbles skittering off the ledge, and only the sound of rushing water stops it from giving away his position. The Father immediately stirs, the shadows tucking even tighter around him, solidifying enough to steady Tobias on his feet.

The Father nudges at his soul, worry and slowly building anger transferring over the bond they built. Tobias feels the temple rumble as the Father prepares every single stone of the temple to attack their new visitors. He probably thinks that they tried to hurt hurt him, that they attempted to touch what isn't theirs.

Tobias forces himself to calm down, reaching back to his Father in reassurance. The temple stills as Tobias does his best to return the nudge the Father had given him. It was hard, and he isn't even sure it did what he intended it to, but only a part of him consists of his Father. The other half doesn't do well with harnessing something as intangible as intertwined essences.

It works, however. The Father calms, and the shadows nuzzle against his face in apology.

Breathing deeply, Tobias looks back down to the now panicked teenagers, eyes once again finding the third one. Apprehension builds in his chest as he stares down at the other boy.

He can't lead them to the Father. Things will only end badly if he does.

* * *

After the third dead end Ezekiel was starting to once again panic. Once again they're back to the large room, which has two separate waterfalls dumping themselves into pools of water so dark and deep they nearly look black. The ceiling is nearly a hundred feet above them, shafts of light dappling the ground below. It's too far to reach, and the only way left leads even further down, stairs slick with moisture.

Ezekiel outright refuses to go down there, even when Ava and Mason go on without him. Instead he sits in the center of the room, firmly in a light shaft, and tries to shake the feeling of being watched. It's skin crawling, and leaves Ezekiel even more on edge than he already was.

His hand plays with the rock beneath him, unconsciously fidgeting. The whole place is damp, smelling of mold and mildew. Sometimes he scratches up a piece, and discovers new patterns to play with underneath. It's when he's doing that, that he finds the gem.

It sits directly in the center of the floor, between the two waterfalls. In the light it reflects a soft red glow, and that's what catches Ezekiel's attention. He turns and stares at it for a moment, before pulling up another chunk of moss still halfway covering it. When finally finding the edges, the size of the gemstone is nearly that of his whole head. Looking in awe, Ezekiel completely forgets of the feeling of being watched, as he reaches out and touches it.

Instantly he's plunged into the cold. It's dark, and damp, and shadows cling to everything. Spinning around shows nothing but a dark doorway behind him, and in front is nothing but blackness and a ledge. Shivering, he tries to move from his place, but finds himself unable to back away into the door. The only path is to the ledge.

Looking over the edge reveals nothing but water, and a gaping hole in the wall halfway submerged in the water. Air whistles through it, an exit.

Yet before he can clamor over the edge and take his chances with the water, the shadows start to solidify. They pull together, blocking the exit and growing taller, and taller and taller. He can't tell where they truly start and end, but Ezekiel can see where they are most concentrated. They seem to tug at the already meager light in the room, a pure void of blackness. He wants to scream, but nothing comes out of his mouth.

" _ **Hello there, little soul**_ ," The shadows, the Demon, says. The whole room shakes, the ledge beneath him groaning in a way that makes Ezekiel's heart leap to his chest. Right as the words are finished, the skull appears, stark white against the blackness that is the creature's true being.

" ** _Not many find the old tools of communion. Nor can many activate it. Seems you're smarter than your predecessors_**." The Demon hums, voice sounding like the breaking of trees and the crumbling of mountains all at once. It sends reverberations down into Ezekiel's teeth, making him clench his jaw in pain.

The Demon tilts forwards, bending slightly down as if to get a better look at him, horns scraping against the roof as he moves. Ezekiel's response is to skitter backwards, only to once again find himself unable to enter the doorway. The Demon is now nearly eye level with him, the empty sockets staring straight into him. Assessing. It feels horrible, like having every inch of himself torn out and tossed into the open, to be exposed to the elements.

But suddenly the Demon freezes, stiller than any creature has the right to be. Then slowly, ever so slowly, a hand reaches up to touch him. Every instinct screams at Ezekiel to run, to get away, to find any place out of reach of this _thing_.

" ** _You look like_** -"

And with a gasp, Ezekiel is jerked back into the light, waterfalls thundering, and a hand on his shoulder. Ezekiel dry heaves for a moment, fingers clutched tightly to his mouth. The hand tugs again, trying to spin him around. Exhausted, Ezekiel allows it to.

Only to stop in his tracks at what he sees. It's him. Same face, same eyes, same body. An exact copy, except when looking at the smaller details. His skin isn't as dark as Ezekiel's, still olive toned but looking like he hasn't seen the sun in ages. And his hair is longer, darker, not partially bleached by the summer rays.

"What have you done?" The other Ezekiel asks. When he doesn't respond, the other shakes him, before repeating the question.

"I-I don't-"

He's interrupted by a scream, Ava. The other Ezekiel flinches, and that's all it takes for him to jerk out of his grip and dart for the door. The other one yells for him, reaches forwards to grab his elbow, but Ezekiel is faster. Within second's he's dived down into the dark.

He lets instinct guide him, even as stone scrapes at his arms, and the shadows seem to reach out to him with hands. He barely feels like he can breathe, like he can think, as he goes further down, down, down.

Ava and Mason are gone. All that Ezekiel finds is the flashlight, laying alone on the ground, light weakly trying to pierce through the darkness. He picks it up, aiming both the way he came from and then to where he's going. Nothing but dripping water and blackness.

Blood rushing in his ears, Ezekiel continues on.

* * *

Tobias finds his way back to the deepest chamber first, the secret tunnels giving him a much more direct path back. He feels sick, and worried. He has never seen someone do something like that before. And when the shadows in the central chamber had started converging, well. He needed to get Ezekiel out of there before Father properly looked at their new visitors.

He didn't expect the other boy to run. Maybe he should have.

The Father greets Tobias back with a finger pressing softly to his face. Tobias holds it, stopping the other being from pulling away in fear that he could hurt the boy. Curious, the Father presses against the bond, only to find the turbulent emotions in his son.

"Father."

" ** _Hush, child. It's alright_**."

"Father I-"

" _ **Hush**_ ," He says again, more force in it this time, and in response Tobias' jaw shuts with a small click. The Father once again caresses his son's cheek, before carefully herding the boy to a place to sit. He obeys, letting go this time when the Father tries to pull away.

They can both hear the steps getting closer, and see the light coming in from the entrance to the room. Tobias curls into himself, trying to hide his feelings from the Father. It's even harder with him this close, and he knows he at least partially failed when the shadows wrap themselves around his shoulders, nuzzling.

Ezekiel barely enters the room before trying to turn back. The shadows stop him, slamming shut in the doorway behind him. They wrap around him too, affectionate, but his face says that he doesn't understand that. He's terrified. The flashlight he's holding is pointed at the ground, just enough light reflecting back upwards for Tobias to see his every expression.

The Father moves carefully, attempting to not scare the boy currently in his grasp. A hand extends towards Ezekiel, but pulls back before touching him when Ezekiel flinches.

" _ **You are safe, child. I won't hurt you. I won't hurt my son**_."

Ezekiel is shaking, trying so very hard to press further away from the Demon in front of him, "Son?"

" ** _Yes_** ," The Father hums, but it sounds more like rumbling thunder, " _ **Surely you've already seen your brother, Tobias, little one. He's my son too**_."

"I don't have a dad," Ezekiel says, voice sounding oh so quiet, "I-I don't have a brother."

" _ **You do. Your mother stole you from me, stole both of you. Only Tobias came back**_." The shadows around the both of them tighten, just a little bit, " ** _I thought I had lost you. Thought I'd never be free, never get to keep you both safe_**."

He sounds angry now, and if it's enough to put Tobias on edge, then it's downright terrifying to Ezekiel. Tears fall down his cheeks, and that's what makes The Father freeze, before once again softening his tone.

" _ **Child. What is your name?**_ "

"E-Ezekiel."

" _ **Ezekiel**_ ," The Father repeats, before once again reaching for him, " _ **Ezekiel, I need you to help me. You have a part of me inside you. Both you, and Tobias, are needed for me to be free. For me to leave this temple. Don't you want that?**_ "

Ezekiel shakes his head vehemently. The Father's hands get closer.

" ** _Ezekiel. Come here_**."

Fear is what drives Ezekiel to jerk against the shadows holding him, the flashlight beam landing on them and sending them skittering away from the light in pain. He stumbles backwards, before using the adrenaline to spin around and take off through the entrance before the Father can even touch him.

The Father snarls, unable to fit put his hand through the hole, an old spell, old chains, leaving him in this room and this room alone. He shifts forwards, already preparing to close down every single entrance in this place. Collapse half of the building if he has to. Anything to keep his son from getting away from him.

Yet right before he does, he's jerked out of his concentration by a horrible sensation.

Tobias is cold, scared, and _dying_.

He had taken the time the Father was angry, and had jumped down into the water below. While he might care for his Father, there is no way that Tobias can allow him to be freed. If he wasn't bound to this temple, well. Tobias doesn't want to think of what that would mean for anyone other than him and Ezekiel.

Besides, when he jerked, trying to grab Ezekiel before he moved out of reach, the Father had stepped away from the only other exit to the temple. One that he couldn't force shut, no matter how he tried. So if the Father was going to keep Ezekiel trapped, then Tobias would make sure they'd both stay down here.

At least, that was his plan. The water had other plans. It was freezing, and deep, and once he plunged under the surface, Tobias very quickly realized that he could no longer tell which way was up. Attempting to kick did very little either, his limbs seemingly refusing to move. He can't breathe. He can't-

Large hands carefully scoop around him, lifting him to the surface in seconds. Tobias instantly takes a deep breath, before coughing from the shock of it. Those hands curl around him, holding him like one might hold an insect in between them, a cave of darkness. Shadows detach themselves, invisible in this light, and wrap around Tobias' arms, not just embracing him but holding him in place.

The Father is no fool. He knows exactly what his son thinks of him escaping this temple, and exactly what Tobias was trying to do when he jumped in the water. Only the fear and guilt he can feel from his son keeps him from punishing the boy. Instead, he tucks his hands close to his center, and presses his will against Tobias' own through the bond.

Tobias jerks, both physically and with his soul, "Father, plea-"

" _ **Sleep**_."

He immediately slumps into the Father's palm, exhaustion quickly, and unnaturally, overtaking his body. The boy whimpers, pressing his face against the surface beneath him.

"Father...."

" _ **Hush. I will wake you when I have your brother, and I am free of this place. Until then, sleep**_."

The Father waits until his son is tucked deep under the spell, before opening himself back up. Gently, he lays his now sleeping son within him, right in his core. Right where he is safe, and warm.

Now. All he needs to do is find where exactly in the temple Ezekiel ran off to.

And bring him home.

**Author's Note:**

> So I listened to the playlist "the D I S C O R D" on spotify by eveningalchemist while writing this. Highly suggest you check it out. It's good.


End file.
